Released | 1981 |
Format | LP |
Label | Sesame Street Records |
Cat no. | CTW 22096 |
Grin & Giggle with Big Bird is one of the most unusual Sesame Street albums ever made. It opens with Big Bird informing the cast that it's "National Joke Day," and aside from the songs listed below, most of the album consists of joke telling between the cast members, as well as humorous aural skits.
Oscar the Grouch takes an elevator down through his trash can to find his uncle's Grouch Joke Book, and he passes things like a subway terminal and a stockyard as he looks for it. Later on, he attempts to play "The Marine's Hymn" on the saxophone several times, only to be laughed at by other people. He also calls "Dial-a-Grouch" to hear some grouch jokes.
Meanwhile, Big Bird attempts to lean against a building to hold it up (even though Gordon tells him he doesn't have to), recites Lewis Carroll's nonsense poem "Jabberwocky," and both Big Bird and Little Bird sing a song consisting of old jokes. The album even includes some audience participation, as one section of jokes leaves space for the listener at home to start a knock-knock joke, and the cast responds with their portions of the joke.
The track listing on the back cover, as well as on the record itself, only lists the song titles and leaves all of the dialogue portions uncredited. Unusually for Sesame Street albums, the songs don't list what character performs them, either. The album is one of the shortest of the Sesame Street LPs.
Track listing[]
Side One
- I've Got a Dog and His Name is Cat - A Cowboy
(Polisar-Connor)
Side Two
- Jabberwocky - Big Bird
(Connor) - Mr. Big Bird, Mr. Little Bird - Big Bird and Little Bird
(Connor-Shimkin) - Old MacDonald - The Cast
(Connor)
Notes[]
- Although the cover says "Grin & Giggle," the label and spine say "Grin and Giggle."
- The digital releases of the album omit all the dialogue between tracks.
Cast[]
- Loretta Long as Susan
- Sonia Manzano as Maria
- Roscoe Orman as Gordon
- Alaina Reed as Olivia
- Caroll Spinney as Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch
- Fran Brill as Prairie Dawn and Little Bird
- Mike Davis as The Cowboy
Credits[]
- Produced by Arthur Shimkin
- Written by Joseph A. Bailey
- Music Director and Conducted by David Conner
- Music Coordinator: Danny Epstein
- Engineered and mixed by Jim Czak, John Post and Karen Taylor
- Art Director: Robert Pierce
- Cover Photography: Richard Goldman
Other releases[]
- C 5096 (Sesame Street cassette)